Target's CEO has been on the job for three months and has already hired three new C-suite executives, including an 18-year Walmart supply chain veteran. Earnings drop Wednesday.
Target named Jeff England, currently chief supply chain officer at building materials company QXO, as its new top supply chain executive. Before QXO, England spent 18 years at Walmart and rose to senior vice president for supply chain.
He starts at the end of this month, replacing longtime Target veteran Gretchen McCarthy.
It's the third senior hire under CEO Michael Fiddelke, who took over in February. Cara Sylvester came in as chief merchandising officer, Lisa Roath joined as chief operating officer, and England rounds out the top team - all within roughly three months.
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Target has run through several quarters of weak sales. Fiddelke pledged a turnaround when he took over, including a roughly $6 billion plan to fix inventory, in-store experience, and delivery speed.
England's hire fits the plan. Fiddelke told investors in March there was "opportunity for efficiency within supply chain" - the kind of corporate phrase that translates to "we have a problem and we're going to fix it."
The fix is already underway. On April 29, Target opened its first "receive center" - an upstream warehouse - in Houston to hold vendor inventory before it ships to stores.
That keeps shelves stocked without overcrowding distribution centers, and England is being brought in to scale the model nationally.
The hire lands one day before Target reports quarterly results, giving investors heading into Wednesday's print a clearer signal that Fiddelke is serious about the operational rebuild.
The retailer also cut prices on about 3,000 products earlier this year and trimmed corporate headcount to redirect spending toward store workers. The big question Wednesday: are any of those moves showing up in the numbers yet?
The setup is harder than usual, with high inflation and supply chain volatility tied to the Iran war pressuring every retailer. Wall Street will be watching commentary on consumer spending almost as closely as the actual results.
Earnings drop before the bell Wednesday morning. Watch for two things: comments on inventory levels heading into back-to-school, and any specific dollar update on the $6 billion turnaround spend.
England doesn't officially start until the end of May, meaning Wednesday's results still reflect the old supply chain team. The next quarter is when his work begins to show.
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